Highland Capital Management LLC Has $6.66 Million Position in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) by 24.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,647 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Caterpillar were worth $6,660,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Burford Brothers Inc. raised its holdings in Caterpillar by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 3,695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,445,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Caterpillar during the third quarter worth approximately $206,000. BayBridge Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Caterpillar by 35.4% in the third quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC now owns 1,993 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $780,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton grew its holdings in Caterpillar by 126.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 1,602 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $627,000 after acquiring an additional 894 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Caterpillar by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 6,457 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,525,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Caterpillar Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:CAT opened at $385.93 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $188.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Caterpillar Inc. has a twelve month low of $223.76 and a twelve month high of $403.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $368.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $350.95.

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $5.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.53 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $16.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.91 billion. Caterpillar had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 59.88%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Caterpillar Inc. will post 21.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Caterpillar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a $1.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $5.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Caterpillar’s payout ratio is 25.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on CAT. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Caterpillar from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays upped their price target on Caterpillar from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Caterpillar in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Caterpillar from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Caterpillar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $355.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Caterpillar news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of Caterpillar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,750,181.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Anthony D. Fassino sold 3,185 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.36, for a total transaction of $1,119,081.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,750,181.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cheryl H. Johnson sold 2,975 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.48, for a total transaction of $1,018,878.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,347,825.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools.